Maria Theresa Concession
In Austria , the Maria Theresa Concession is the term used for commercial rights that are transferable under private law. They are exceptions in Austrian law, since this has been based on the principle of non-transferability of commercial rights under private law since 1859.
The so-called real trades , also called root trades in the case of entry in the land register , could be sold, given away, pledged and inherited like things. The real trades go back to the time when the granting of trade licenses was one of the tasks of the manor and contributed to its financing. For example, the sale of licensing rights to the owner of a particular property served as a source of income for the landlord. Such quasi-legal rights could only be re-established up to the trade regulations of 1859 - but they also played a certain, marginal role in the period that followed.
The idea that there actually still existed real concessions for the hospitality and pub trade that go back to Empress Maria Theresa herself was considered dubious as early as 1912. Emil Josef Heller's comment on the trade regulations stated at the time, "In Vienna at least there is no license that can be verifiably traced back to an award by the aforementioned Empress."